Times of Drought

Have you ever felt like you were in a spiritual drought? The people of Jeremiah's day were in a physical one because they were in a spiritual one. And in Jeremiah 14, we find hope for those who are thirsty. 

Jeremiah 14:1–3 (ESV) The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought: 2 “Judah mourns, and her gates languish; her people lament on the ground, and the cry of Jerusalem goes up. 3 Her nobles send their servants for water; they come to the cisterns; they find no water; they return with their vessels empty; they are ashamed and confounded and cover their heads.

The answer to spiritual drought is to recognize it. Take note that you're not experiencing the fullness and freshness you once did. That is what Jeremiah is doing in the first 6 verses. He's exposing the nation to their desperate condition. They didn't have water but the real problem was, they did not have the Lord's presence and provision. 

Second, Jeremiah leads the nation in repentance. He cries out on their behalf in honest confession:

Jeremiah 14:7 (ESV) “Though our iniquities testify against us, act, O LORD, for your name’s sake; for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against you.

Jeremiah acknowledges that the people have left the Lord. He turns to God in prayer on their behalf, acknowledging their sins. Jeremiah symbolizes a priest making intercession on behalf of sinners. And notice the admission, "our backslidings are many." Who can't say that about themselves?

Robert Robinson was an English Baptist minister and hymn-writer who wrote the famous song, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing". In that timeless classic, he wrote about his own struggles with faith. "Prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love." Interestingly, Robinson went through a serious season of doubt, and one time was walking by a church and heard them singing his song.

That is the Christian's struggle. And anyone who tells you differently is not being honest. It is the testimony of scripture that even God's best (Abraham, David, and Moses) had terrible seasons of disbelief and ungodly behavior. There is none who is good. 

Jeremiah calls on the God who promised to redeem Israel from all her troubles. 

Jeremiah 14:8–9 (ESV) O you hope of Israel, its savior in time of trouble, why should you be like a stranger in the land, like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night? 9 Why should you be like a man confused, like a mighty warrior who cannot save? Yet you, O LORD, are in the midst of us, and we are called by your name; do not leave us.”

The amazing name that Jeremiah calls the Lord - "hope of Israel, its savior in time of trouble" - is so important. We need a savior from our sins, from our wanderings. Christianity is not a once-saved event. It's a continuous life of constant saving where God redeems us back to Himself and purifies us from our own spiritual estrangement. 

Later he writes:

Jeremiah 14:21–22 (ESV) Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake; do not dishonor your glorious throne; remember and do not break your covenant with us. 22 Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain? Or can the heavens give showers? Are you not he, O LORD our God? We set our hope on you, for you do all these things.

Of course, the sins of Israel demanded God's judgment and He did not quickly fix them. Their nation was swept away and they ended up in Babylon. But even there He would bring them back. Spiritual droughts happen and when the pain shows up, it's pointing us back to the Savior who doesn't leave.